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The world's most intricate light-painted selfie

Jeremy Jackson himself is at the centre of his dazzling psychedelic photography

Jeremy Jackson

This article was taken from the May 2014 issue of Wired magazine. Be the first to read Wired's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by <span class="s1">subscribing online.

Light-painting photos are Jeremy Jackson's speciality. "There's no Photoshop editing or digital trickery involved, I use light as my pen," says the Virginia-based artist. In this image, entitled "Lens Swapping LP", Jackson (with reflection) stands at the edge of a pond, twirling a bar studded with LEDs above his head. The orange effect is created by a clump of burning steel wool, the blue stars are flashlights. "There are a lot of possibilities with creating art with light," Jackson, 34, explains. "A flash gives an even coat of light, but with a flashlight you can add it wherever you choose."

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Jackson, also known as Tacky-shack, started experimenting with light art about five years ago. "My friend and I connected some glowsticks together in a hoop, set the exposure of my Canon PowerShot at 15 seconds and walked the hoop away from the camera," he says. "The result blew my mind."

A growing wave of artists are now employing a variety of tricks: a strip of LEDs across a moving bike-wheel to create fractal geometries; an egg whisk to spin a basket of burning steel wool; and turning torches on and off for hours to make starbursts appear, to name a few. "There are many variables, but adjusting just one can create a new effect," he says. "That's what keeps us hooked."

This article was first published in the May 2014 issue of WIRED magazine